His mother Gloria worked evenings to support the family after Wingfield's parents separation when Dontonio was in the third grade.

Wingfield had a solid freshman season with the Bearcats, he broke a first-game school record held by Oscar Robertson by scoring 30 points and 12 rebounds[3] in his debut against Butler.

[1] Called “Baby Shaq” by those around the Bearcat program, Wingfield went on to average 16 points and 9 rebounds for the season, culminating in a 20-point 10-rebound effort in the NCAA Tournament opening round loss to Wisconsin.

[3] He hired an agent the day after the Bearcats' first-round loss in the NCAA tournament, the first college freshman in nearly twenty years to go pro.

[2] Subsequently, he was selected by the Seattle SuperSonics in the second round (37th pick overall) of the 1994 NBA draft, but appeared sparingly throughout his short National Basketball Association career; after his debut with the Sonics (20 games, 81 minutes), he was selected by the Toronto Raptors in the 1995 expansion draft, but was waived before the season began.

[4] During college and afterwards, Wingfield encountered various personal and legal troubles, including being convicted for assaulting two suburban Cincinnati police officers.

[5] Heading to Washington for a workout with the Wizards the very next day, Wingfield was driving on a wet road near Albany in November 1998 when he skidded to avoid a deer.

Three were raised in Cincinnati – DJ was a three-time All-Ohio high school basketball player played basketball at Ohio University.,[7] Donovan Wingfield who studied music and was a volleyball player at Tuskegee University; and Autumn ‘’Butterfly’’ Mason whom Wingfield didn't meet until 2009, when she was thirteen.